China steals Korean traditional food, ‘Kimchi’
In 2013, Kimchi was recommended for UNESCO list. And, Kimjang, the South Korean culture that makes and shares Kimchi, was added to the UNESCO list, suggesting that both Kimchi and Kimjang are from Korea. But, in 2021, Korea and China are disputing over the origin of Kimchi. China’s thinly-veiled attempt to steal Korea’s traditional food is to blame.
Chinese netizens have recently started to claim that Kimchi is Chinese traditional food, not Korean food. They assert that Pao cai, Chinese pickled vegetable dish, is the origin of Kimchi. Koreans, as China claims, made Kimchi in Joseon Dynasty, while trying to cook Pao cai. This is why China claims that Kimchi is Chinese traditional food.
Moreover, a Chinese Youtuber deceived her followers into believing that Kimchi is Chinese food. She even introduced Kimjang as a Chinese culture. Zhang Jun, the Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations, posted a photo of making Kimchi, claiming that Kimchi is Chinese food, indicating that China is trying to deliberately distort the truth. Baidu, a Chinese web portal, is also spreading disinformation by claiming that Kimchi is Chinese food.
Many Koreans are frustrated by such baffling comments on Kimchi. None of Chinese arguments has any single evidence. Pao cai has no relation to Kimchi. Kimchi and Pao cai are different foods, which is stated on ISO. In 2020, when China issued a document about Pao cai on ISO, it stated that “the document about Pao cai does not apply to Kimchi”, meaning that even China sees Kimchi and Pao cai are different.
And, when Kimjang was added to the UNESCO list in 2013, China didn’t complain about UNESCO’s decision. At that time, none of Chinese people said that Kimchi is Chinese food. Moreover, when China Daily, an English media in mainland China, reported about Kimjang and Kimchi, it introduced Kimchi as Korean food. The newspaper didn’t mention the relation between Kimchi and Pao cai or China at all, suggesting that China is just trying to steal Korean traditional food.
Even with ample evidence that most Chinese know Kimchi has no relation to China, it still declares that Kimchi as Chinese traditional food. More frustratingly, Kimchi is not the only Korean food that China is keen to steal. Now, Beijing claims Samgye-tang, a Korean chicken soup with ginseng, as Chinese traditional food.
Baidu published an online encyclopedia, stating that Samgyetang originated from Guangdong, the southern province in China. But, its encyclopedia doesn’t offer any single evidence that supports Samgyetang is Chinese food.
For this, Seo Kyung-duk, a professor and the expert of Korean history, pointed out that China doesn’t have HS code, an internationally standardized system of names and numbers to classify traded products. Meanwhile, Korea has an HS code for Samgyetang(1602.32.1010). Given that HS code determines the origin and tariff of products for international trade, even the FTA admits Samgyetang as Korean food. If it is genuinely originated from China, the officials from Beijing should have to complain about the HS code of Samgyetang.
While China insists on saying that both Kimchi and Samgyetang are Chinese traditional foods, the country hasn’t ever made a complaint against the FTA or global community, slamming Korea for stealing Chinese traditional foods. Such attitudes are quite weird for a country that was stolen its tradition.
The world knows both Kimchi and Samgyetang are Korean traditional foods. And, even most Chinese know the truth. China would gain no benefit by stealing other country’s traditions.
